IDFI Presented its Report on Access to Public Information in Georgia

Today the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) presented its 2018 report on access to public information in Georgia and awarded 43 top open public institutions.

Certificates were given to all public institutions with 100% compliance to IDFI’s freedom of information requests sent in 2018. These include: Civil Service Bureau, National Statistics Office, Ministry of Environment and Agriculture, Land Transport Agency, National Environment Agency, Education Management Information System, National Food Agency, etc.

The Least Open Public Institutions of 2018: The system of the Ministry of Justice was evaluated by IDFI as the least open public institution.

In 2018, IDFI sent 316 freedom of information request to the Ministry of Justice and its agencies (11 LEPLs). 316 requests were left unanswered. The Ministry of Justice did not reply to 25 requests out of 26, gaining an openness rating of only 3.85%.

In addition to 7 agencies included in the system of the Ministry of Justice, 8 more public institutions completely ignored IDFI’s freedom of information requests: Service Agency of the Ministry of Finance, State Treasury, City Hall of Tsalenjikha Municipality, Mestia Municipality, and others.

Access to Public Information in 2018: According to monitoring results, access to public information has deteriorated compared to the previous year. IDFI received responses to 3,653 out of 6,413 total requests sent to 282 public institutions, 493 responses were incomplete, 33 requests were refused, and 959 requests were ignored. Requests about bonuses and salary supplements were most frequently ignored (20% of public institutions).

Other problematic categories included: fuel limits and expenses, judicial disputes against public institutions and restaurant expenses.

Access to Public Information in 2010-2018: During the given period, IDFI sent 51,723 public information requests and received 42,965 responses. The highest percentage of requests were answered (90%) in 2013. Since then, the overall rating has fluctuated in the 82-88% range. Access to information rating in 2018 amounted to 85%.

NOTE: Ministry of Defense of Georgia and Racha-Lechkhumi & Kvemo Svaneti Governor’s Administration responded to IDFI’s request (sent in 2018) on information upon the completion of the report document (April 23, 2019).

The project is supported by the East-West Management Institute’s (EWMI) Advancing CSO Capacities and Engaging Society for Sustainability (ACCESS) project, funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

See the access to public information full rating (2018y) of the Public Institutions here